Visually distinctive indicators to detect grouping errors

• US 10,089,593 B1
• Filed: 12/17/2013
• Issued: 10/02/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Griffith, Charles M., Shapira, Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Logan, Kyle O
• Application Number:
  US14/109,829
• Time in Patent Office: 1,750 Days
• Field of Search: 700224
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping

Abstract

Various embodiments of a system and method and apparatus for determining a grouping of containers, assigning a visually distinctive indicator to the group, directing application of the visually distinctive indicator to the containers of the group are disclosed. The visually distinctive indicators of containers of a group may be analyzed manually or automatically and a message may be issued for containers that are determined to not be members of the group based on the dominant visually distinctive indicators of the group. The distinctive characteristics of the visually distinctive indicators may be colors, patterns or the like.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

one or more computing devices configured to implement a control system configured to;

for each of a plurality of input containers;

determine a grouping for the input container;

determine a visually distinctive indicator for the determined grouping, wherein the determined visually distinctive indicator is visually distinctive from one or more other visually distinctive indicators for one or more other groupings; and

subsequent to said determine the visually distinctive indicator, send an instruction to apply the determined visually distinctive indicator to the input container; and

a visual indicator applicator configured to receive the instruction to apply the determined visually distinctive indicator and, in response, to cause the determined visually distinctive indicator to be applied to the respective input container;

wherein the control system is further configured to;

direct the input container to a grouping container for the grouping; and

instruct a visual verification of the grouping container based at least in part on the visually distinctive indicator for the grouping for the input container, wherein one or more input containers without the determined visually distinctive indicator are readily visually distinguishable from input containers of the grouping having the determined visually distinctive indicator.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a docking bay indicator associated with a docking bay, wherein said each of the plurality of input containers is a shipment and the grouping container is a shipping container stationed at the docking bay; and

wherein to direct the input container to the grouping container, the control system is further configured to;

direct the docking bay indicator to display an indicator that matches the visually distinctive indicator determined for the grouping.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein to determine the visually distinctive indicator for the determined grouping, the control system is further configured to select a particular visually distinctive indicator as a color, shape or pattern or combination of color, shape or pattern.

4. A method, comprising:

performing, by one or more computing devices;

for each of a plurality of input containers;

determining a grouping for the input container;

determining a visually distinctive indicator for the determined grouping, wherein the determined visually distinctive indicator is visually distinctive from one or more other visually distinctive indicators for one or more other groupings;

subsequent to said determining the visually distinctive indicator, instructing the determined visually distinctive indicator to be applied to the input container; and

directing the input container to a grouping container for the grouping.

5. The method of claim 4,

wherein said each of the plurality of input containers is a shipment and the grouping container is a shipping vehicle stationed at a docking bay with a respective docking bay indicator;

and

wherein directing the input container to a grouping container for the grouping comprises directing the docking bay indicator to display an indicator that matches the visually distinctive indicator determined for the grouping.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the determined visually distinctive indicator is a color, shape or pattern or combination of color, shape or pattern.

7. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

receiving an image of the input containers in the grouping container;

determining, from analysis of the received image, whether any input containers in the grouping container do not exhibit the visually distinctive indicator; and

outputting a message for any containers in the grouping container that do not exhibit the visually distinctive indicator.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising instructing, in response to determining that a container in the grouping container does not exhibit the visually distinctive indicator, a re-sort of the input container in the grouping container that does not exhibit the visually distinctive indicator.

9. The method of claim 4, further comprising grouping, subsequent to said directing the input container to the grouping container for the grouping, the grouping container with one or more other grouping containers that also group input containers exhibiting the same determined visually distinctive indicator such that one or more containers among the group of grouping containers that do not exhibit the determined visually distinctive indicator are readily distinguishable from the input containers of the group of grouping containers.

10. The method of claim 4, further comprising applying the determined visually distinctive indicator to the input container such that the applied visually distinctive indicator indicates a proper orientation for the input container.

11. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

determining another visually distinctive indicator for another determined grouping;

instructing the another determined visually distinctive indicator to be applied to another input container; and

directing the input container to another grouping container, wherein a different visually distinctive indicator is assigned to each different grouping.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable medium, storing program instructions computer-executable to perform:

for each of a plurality of input containers;

determining a grouping for the input container;

determining a visually distinctive indicator for the determined grouping, wherein the determined visually distinctive indicator is visually distinctive from one or more other visually distinctive indicators for one or more other groupings;

subsequent to said determining the visually distinctive indicator for the determined grouping, instructing the determined visually distinctive indicator to be applied to the input container; and

instructing the input container to be directed to a grouping container for the grouping.

13. The non-transitory medium of claim 12, wherein each of the plurality of input containers is a shipment and the grouping container is a shipping vehicle stationed at a docking bay with a respective docking bay indicator;

and wherein to instruct the input container to be directed to the grouping container for the grouping the program instructions are further executable to perform directing the docking bay indicator to display an indicator that matches the visually distinctive indicator determined for the grouping.

14. The non-transitory medium of claim 12, wherein to instruct the determined visually distinctive indicator to be applied to the input container grouping the program instructions are further executable to perform instructing the application of tape, wrap, paint, ink, light, electromagnetic radiation, current or voltage to the input container to create the visually distinctive indicator to alter the appearance of the input container.

15. The non-transitory medium of claim 12, wherein the program instructions are further executable to perform:

receiving an image of the input containers in the grouping container;

determining, from analysis of the received image, whether any input containers in the grouping container do not exhibit the visually distinctive indicator; and

outputting a message for any input containers in the grouping container that do not exhibit the visually distinctive indicator.

16. The non-transitory medium of claim 15, wherein the program instructions are further executable to perform instructing, in response to determining that a container in the grouping container does not exhibit the visually distinctive indicator, a re-sort of the input container in the grouping container that does not exhibit the visually distinctive indicator.

17. The non-transitory medium of claim 12, wherein the grouping container is a virtual container and wherein to instruct the input container to be directed to a grouping container for the grouping the program instructions are further executable to perform directing the input container to the virtual container.

18. The non-transitory medium of claim 12, wherein the program instructions are further executable to instruct modifying, subsequent to said instructing the input container to be directed to a grouping container for the grouping, the visually distinctive indicator of the input container to create a modified visually distinctive indicator such that the input container with the modified visually distinctive indicator is associated with another grouping container.

19. The non-transitory medium of claim 12, wherein the program instructions are further executable to perform associating the determined visually distinctive indicator with a shipping channel such that input containers exhibiting the determined visually distinctive indicator are directed to the shipping channel.

20. The non-transitory medium of claim 12, wherein to instruct the input container to be directed to a grouping container for the grouping the program instructions are further executable to perform instructing shipment of the input container via the grouping container that comprises a shipping transport, wherein the input container is a shipment being shipped in response to an order for an item, the order placed on a network-based site.